Apple says sorry for iPhone Error 53 and issues iOS 9.2.1 update to fix it

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Apple has a lot of support at the moment for its stance on encryption and refusing the FBI access to an iPhone's contents, but it's only a couple of weeks since the company was seen in a less favorable light. There was quite a backlash when users found that installing an update to iOS resulted in Error 53 and a bricked iPhone.

Apple initially said that Error 53 was caused 'for security reasons' following speculation that it was a bid to stop people from using third party repair shops. iFixit suggested that the problem was a result of a failure of parts to correctly sync, and Apple has been rounding criticized for failing to come up with a fix. Today the company has issued an apology, along with an update that ensures Error 53 won't happen again. But there's more good news.

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Automation will take away more than 100,000 jobs within 20 years in the UK

industrial robots

You shouldn’t fear immigrants taking your job, you should fear robots. A new study by jobs search engine Adzuna suggests that more than 100,000 of current job vacancies will be fully automated within the next 20 years.

The results are based on the study of Oxford University researchers, looking at which jobs would basically be given to robots before 2035.

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Samsung bringing Gear S2 classic 3G/4G smartwatch to Verizon, AT&T, and T-Mobile

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Modern smartwatches are hardly must-have devices. Most are simply extensions of smartphones, serving as nothing more than expensive accessories. In other words, many smartwatches aren't very useful on their own.

Some of these watches, however, have cellular radios, making them useful as a standalone experience. Heck, they could even replace smartphones for those with limited needs. Today, Samsung announces that it is bringing its standalone-ready Gear S2 classic 3G/4G smartwatch to Verizon, AT&T, and T-Mobile.

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The majority of IT pros view email as a major security threat

email open read

Sixty-five percent of IT professionals don’t feel equipped to defend against email-based cyber attacks, according to the findings of a report carried out by email security and archiving company Mimecast.

The global study of 600 IT security professionals -- Mimecast Business Email Threat Report 2016, Email Security Uncovered -- also found that 64 percent of respondents regard email as a major security threat and one third believe email is more vulnerable today than it was five years ago.

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Windows 10 Insider Preview Redstone Build 14267 arrives on the Fast ring -- and brings welcome improvements

Windows 10

After a flurry of new builds, Insiders on the Fast ring have had to wait a whole two weeks for the latest Windows 10 update to arrive.

Unlike previous Fast ring releases, which focused on updates to OneCore (the core that Windows 10 shares across devices) and preparing the ground work for future additions, like extensions, Build 14267 actually has some improvements worthy of note, including several usability enhancements to Microsoft Edge.

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Prelert brings behavioral analytics to Elasticsearch

Data analytics

Increased use of big data in IT management and other areas means that companies are on the look out for new tools to give them better insights from their information.

Behavioral analytics company Prelert is making it easier for Elasticsearch users to automate the analysis of large data sets with the launch of Behavioral Analytics for the Elastic Stack.

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IBM introduces Blockchain-as-a-service

IBM logo

IBM is looking to move blockchain technology beyond Bitcoin and money transfer as it announced Blockchain-as-a-service on Tuesday.

Blockchain-as-a-service allows developers to "create digital assets and accompanying business logic to more securely and privately transfer assets among members of a permissioned blockchain test network".

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Vertafore and Microsoft launch first custom CRM solution for the insurance industry

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CRM systems have become essential tools for sales and marketing teams, giving them the ability to organize and automate the processes that build good customer relationships.

But off-the-shelf solutions don't always meet the needs of specialist industries. Insurance technology specialist Vertafore is launching its new Agency SalesTrack solution, built on Microsoft Dynamics CRM to cater specifically for the insurance sector.

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Apple's new Trade Up With Installments program aims to lure Android users to iPhone

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Apple has launched a new program called Trade Up With Installments which makes it possible to upgrade to the latest iPhone in a more affordable way. As the name suggests, this is more than a straight trade-in program -- upgraders can use the trade-in value of their old handset to reduce on-going monthly costs.

This is something that will appeal not only to people with older iPhones who are looking to get their hands on a newer model, but also ex-Android fans -- Apple is opening up the program so Android handsets can be traded in and their value offset against the cost of a new iPhone. Windows Phone handsets are also eligible.

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Cloud storage providers could be breaching the Consumer Rights’ Act

Warning Sign Sky Cloud Cloudy

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is to launch an investigation into whether cloud storage users are paying the right amount for their data storage service amidst concerns that cloud providers are hiking prices and are locking customers into pricey contracts.

The issue has arisen at a time when cloud storage is becoming ever more popular with consumers and businesses. The Office for National Statistics has estimated that 40 percent of UK adults now use cloud storage. Consumers often chose to store their photos and music on the cloud whilst businesses frequently depend on cloud application services, including as Software as a Service (SaaS) and Platform as a Service (PaaS).

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95 percent of US consumers share their passwords

weak password

It seems that convenience trumps security when it comes to passwords. Although 73 percent of US consumers believe sharing login details is risky, 95 percent do share between one and six of their passwords with other people.

A new survey by LastPass also reveals that only 19 percent of respondents say they don't share passwords that would jeopardize their identity or financial information, leaving a scary 81 percent of people who would share them.

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Windows clone ReactOS hits version 0.4.0

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It’s been ten long years since the last major release, but open source Windows clone ReactOS is still very much alive, and the latest release shows just what’s been achieved since 2006.

There’s finally support for NTFS read and ext2 read/ write, out of the box.

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Are you Digitally Enlightened or an Online Nudist?

personal-keyboard

According to the results of a new survey, while two thirds of US respondents say they would like extra layers of online privacy and security, their actions prove otherwise as few even use currently available tools.

The study by VPN provider Hide My Ass! has been used to categorize people into five different approaches to online life:

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New research suggests alarm system SimpliSafe simply isn't safe

sniffer

If you watch TV at all, at least in the US, you've likely seen the ads for the latest technologies being pushed to market. While many folks like to be early adopters, there's something to be said for ignoring that pie-in-the-sky pitch and waiting until something has had time on the market and been thoroughly tested.

We recently saw this with the Ring doorbell, a product that continues to run endless TV commercials, perhaps just banking on appealing to the average person who doesn't look into things too carefully. Another one taking up your screen time these days is a new alarm system calling itself SimpliSafe. The problem is, research indicates it may not be living up to its impressive moniker.

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IT professionals' bad security habits exposed

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Many IT personnel don't follow the same security protocols they’re expected to enforce according to the results of a new survey of over 500 professionals working in IT security roles.

The study by Absolute Software Corporation shows that 45 percent of IT professionals admitted to knowingly circumventing their own organization's security policies. In addition 33 percent of respondents admitted to successfully hacking their own or another organization.

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